State in the Caucasus which existed from 1918 to 1921; predecessor of present-day Georgia
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Map of borders submitted by the Democratic Republic of Georgia to the Paris Peace Conference in 1921, including territories that were disputed or subsequently lost.
TheDemocratic Republic of Georgia (DRG;Georgian:საქართველოს დემოკრატიული რესპუბლიკა,romanized:sakartvelos demok'rat'iuli resp'ublik'a) was the first modern establishment of arepublic ofGeorgia, which existed from May 1918 to March 1921. Recognized by all major European powers of the time, DRG was created in the wake of theRussian Revolution of 1917, which led to the collapse of theRussian Empire and allowed territories formerly underRussia's rule to assert independence. In contrast toBolshevik Russia, DRG was governed by a moderate, multi-party political system led by theGeorgian Social Democratic Party (Mensheviks).
Initially, DRG was aprotectorate of theGerman Empire. However, after the German defeat inWorld War I, the country was partially occupied byBritish troops, who were sent there to counter a proposedBolshevik invasion. The British had to leave in 1920 because of theTreaty of Moscow, in which Russia recognized Georgia's independence in exchange for DRG not hosting forces hostile to Russia's interests.[2] Now that Western European powers were no longer present in Georgia, in February 1921 the BolshevikRed Army proceeded toinvade the country, leading to DRG's defeat and collapse by March of that year, with Georgia becoming aSoviet republic. The Georgian Government, led by Prime MinisterNoe Zhordania, moved to France where it continued to work inexile. The government-in-exile was recognized by France, Britain, Belgium, and Poland as the only legitimate government of Georgia until the 1930s, when growing Soviet power and political processes in Europe made it impractical to do so indefinitely.[3]
Although short-lived, DRG continues to be an inspiration for modern day Georgia due to its legacy of democracy and pluralism.[4] DRG wasone of the first countries in Europe to grant women the right to vote as enshrined in the Georgian constitution, which was "unusual in most European constitutions at the time".[5] Several women of varying backgrounds were elected to the Georgian parliament,[6] as were representatives of nine ethnicities, including Germans, Russians, Armenians, Azerbaijanis, and Jews.[7] DRG also saw the founding of Georgia'sfirst fully fledged university, thereby realizing a longstanding goal cherished by generations of Georgian intellectuals whose efforts were, up to that point, consistently frustrated by the Imperial Russian authorities.[8]
Many Georgians, influenced by the ideas ofIlia Chavchavadze and other intellectuals from the late 19th century, insisted on national independence. A cultural national awakening was further strengthened by the restoration of the autocephaly of theGeorgian Orthodox Church (12 March 1917) and the establishment of a nationaluniversity in Tbilisi (1918). In contrast, the Georgian Mensheviks regarded independence fromRussia as a temporary step against the Bolshevik revolution and considered calls for Georgia's independence chauvinistic and separatist. The union of Transcaucasus was short-lived though. Undermined by increasing internal tensions and by pressure from theGerman andOttoman empires, the federation collapsed on 26 May 1918, when Georgia declared independence.[10] Two days later both Armenia and Azerbaijan declared their independence as well.[11]
Georgia was immediately recognized by Germany and theOttoman Empire. The young state had to place itself under German protection in theTreaty of Poti and to cede its largelyMuslim-inhabited regions (including the cities ofBatumi,Ardahan,Artvin,Akhaltsikhe andAkhalkalaki) to the Ottoman government in the 4 JuneTreaty of Batum. However, German support enabled the Georgians to repel the Bolshevik threat fromAbkhazia.German forces were almost certainly under the command ofFriedrich Freiherr Kress von Kressenstein. Following the German defeat in theFirst World War, British occupation forces arrived in the country,[12] with the permission of the Georgian government. Relations between the British and the local population were more strained than they had been with the Germans. British-held Batumi remained out of Georgia's control until 1920.[13] In December 1918, a British force was deployed inTbilisi too.[12]
Georgia's relations with its neighbors were uneasy. Territorial disputes with Armenia,Denikin'sWhite Russian government and Azerbaijan led to armed conflicts in the first two cases. A British military mission attempted to mediate these conflicts in order to consolidate all anti-Bolshevik forces in the region. To prevent White Russian army forces from crossing into the newly established states, the British commander in the region drew a line across the Caucasus that Denikin would not be permitted to cross, giving both Georgia and Azerbaijan temporary relief. The threat of invasion by Denikin's forces, notwithstanding the British position, brought Georgia and Azerbaijan together in a mutual defense alliance on 16 June 1919.[14]
On 14 February 1919, Georgia heldparliamentary elections won by theSocial Democratic Party of Georgia with 81.5% of the vote. On 21 March,Noe Zhordania formed the third government, which had to deal with armed peasants' revolts incited by local Bolshevik activists[15] and largely supported by Russia. These became more troublesome when carried out by ethnic minorities such asAbkhazians andOssetians.
However, the land reform was finally well handled by theGeorgian Social Democratic Party government and the country established a multi-party system. In 1919, reforms in the judicial system and local self-governance were carried out. Abkhazia was granted autonomy. Nevertheless, ethnic issues continued to trouble the country, especiallyon the part of the Ossetians, as witnessed in May 1920.Nikolay Chkheidze proposed awhite mandate[clarification needed] for Georgia, vying to protect Georgia in event of an invasion by theRed Army. Many opposed him though. It is unknown whether or not theKingdom of Italy wanted to place Georgia under its protection as a white mandate, but they were considering it. Nevertheless, Georgia did not become a mandate, resulting in theRed Army invasion of Georgia.
Noe Ramishvili became the chairman of the first government of the Republic. In 1930, he was assassinated by aBolshevik spy inParis.
The year 1920 was marked by increased threats from theRussian SFSR. With the defeat of the White movement and the Red Armies' advance to the Caucasus frontiers, the republic's situation became extremely tense. In January, the Soviet leadership offered Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan an alliance against the White armies in South Russia and the Caucasus. The Government of the DRG refused to enter any military alliance, referring to its policy of neutrality and noninterference, but suggested negotiations towards a political settlement of the relations between two countries in the hope that this might lead to recognition of Georgia's independence byMoscow. Severe criticism of the Georgian refusal by Russian leaders was followed by several unsuccessful attempts by local communists to organize mass anti-government protests.
In April 1920, the11th Red Army established a Soviet regime inAzerbaijan, and the Georgian BolshevikSergo Orjonikidze requested permission from Moscow to advance into Georgia. Though official consent was not granted by Lenin andSovnarkom, local Bolsheviks attempted to seize the Military School of Tbilisi as a preliminary to acoup d'état on 3 May 1920, but were successfully repelled by GeneralKvinitadze. The Georgian government began mobilization and appointedGiorgi Kvinitadzecommander-in-chief. In the meantime, in response to Georgia's alleged provision of assistance to the Azeri nationalist rebellion inGanja, Soviet forces attempted to penetrate Georgian territory, but were repelled by Kvinitadze in brief border clashes at theRed Bridge. Within a few days, peace talks resumed in Moscow. Under the terms of the controversialMoscow Peace Treaty of 7 May, Georgian independence was recognized in return for the legalization of Bolshevik organizations and a commitment not to allow foreign troops on Georgian soil.[16]
A vote at theLeague of Nations on granting membership to Georgia was held on 16 December 1920, with the resolution defeated: 10 voted for it, 13 against, and 19 abstained.[17] Georgia gainedde jure recognition from the Allies on 27 January 1921.[18] This, however, did not prevent the country from being annexed by theRed Army toSoviet Russia.
After Azerbaijan and Armenia had beenSovietized by theRed Army, Georgia found itself surrounded by hostile Soviet republics. Moreover, as the British had already evacuated the Caucasus, the country was left without any foreign support.
According to Soviet sources[citation needed], relations with Georgia deteriorated over alleged violations of the peace treaty, re-arrests of Georgian Bolsheviks, obstruction of convoys passing through Georgia toArmenia, and a strong suspicion that Georgia was aiding armed rebels in the North Caucasus. For its part, Georgia accused Moscow of fomenting anti-government riots in various regions of the country, and of provoking border incidents in theZaqatala region, disputed with theAzerbaijan Democratic Republic. The Lori "neutral zone" was another challenge, asSoviet Armenia categorically demanded that Georgia withdraw the troops that had been stationed in the region since the fall of the Armenian Republic.
The Act of Independence of Georgia, declared on 26 May 1918, in brief, outlined the main principles of the nation's future democracy. According to this act, "the Democratic Republic of Georgia equally guarantees to every citizen within her limits political rights irrespective of nationality, creed, social rank or sex". The first government, formed the same day, was led byNoe Ramishvili. In October 1918, the National Council of Georgia has renamed the Parliament and announced new elections to be held on 14 February 1919.
Noe Zhordania, the chairman of the second and the third government of the Republic
During its two-year history (1919–1921), the newly electedConstituent Assembly of Georgia, withNikolay Chkheidze as president, adopted 126 laws; these included laws on citizenship, local elections, defence, the official language, agriculture, the legal system, political and administrative arrangements for ethnic minorities (including an act about the People's Council ofAbkhazia), a national system of public education, and some other laws and regulations on fiscal and monetary policy, railways, and trade and domestic production. On 21 February 1921, facing the onset of Soviet aggression, the Constituent Assemblyadopted a constitution of the Democratic Republic of Georgia, the first modernfundamental law in the nation's history, placing emphasis on human rights.
Ministers of the Democratic Republic of Georgia
The country was governed as a type ofdecentralizedunitaryparliamentaryrepublicwith an executive, with the constitution stating that "the state belongs to all the people. Parliament exercises the sovereignty of the nation within the framework of this constitution." The threedecentralized regions included theAbkhaz Autonomy, the Autonomy of Muslim Georgia, and the Zaqatala Region, which were granted autonomy in local affairs. The Chairman of the Government was the chief executive post, approved by the parliament for one-year terms of office (the post could not be held for more than two consecutive terms). The chairman appointed ministers and was responsible for governing the country and representing Georgia in foreign relations. However, the person in the position did not have some privileges common to dual-heads of state and heads of government, such as the ability to dissolve parliament or veto legislation. The 1919 government of Georgia adopted a law onjury trials. The right totrial by jury for serious criminal, political and print cases was incorporated into the1921 Constitution.[19] The highest court was the Senate, indirectly elected by the parliament. Any changes to the constitution must have first been approved by 2/3 of the legislature, and then a majority of the voting public in a referendum.
Project for dividing the territory of Georgia into new administrative units (regions), 1920.
During the Democratic Republic of Georgia, in accordance with the Project for dividing the territory of Georgia into new administrative units (regions), developed by the Self-Government Commission of the Constituent Assembly of the Democratic Republic of Georgia in 1920 (Publication of the Committee of the Union of the elected bodies of local self-government of Georgia No. 2, 1920 (State printing house), Tiflis. – 103 p.; National Library of the Parliament of Georgia, Archive Fund, F 7.876/4 –პროექტი საქართველოს ტერიტორიის დანაწილებისა ახალ საადმინისტრაციო ერთეულებად (ოლქებად)) the division into Governorates and Oblasts was eliminated, uezds and okrugs were preserved, renamed to regions. The names of the regions were mainly proposed by the names of their administrative centers. Minor changes were made to their borders and several former uezds and okrugs were united: Batumi and Artvin okrugs – into the Batumi region, Akhaltsikhe and Akhalkalaki uezds – into the Akhaltsikhe region, Dusheti and Tianet uezds into the Ananuri region. In addition, three autonomous entities were created: Abkhazian autonomy (Sukhumi region), Autonomy of Muslim Georgia (Batumi region) and Zagatala region. Two-level local self-government was introduced: 18 regions and equivalent to regions, the capital of Georgia – Tiflis (Tbilisi) at the regional level and 356 cities and communities at the local level. The southern part of the Ardahan district and the Olta district – if the Democratic Republic of Georgia establishes control over them, will be part of the created Artaani region.
New administrative-territorial units (regions – «olki») of the Democratic Republic of Georgia, created in accordance with the Project, on the basis of existing uezds and okrugs of the Russian Empire, (alternative names of areas are given in brackets):
1 – Tiflis region (Samokalako), capital – Tiflis
2 – Borchaly region (Kvemo Kartli), capital – Ratevani / Ekaterinenfeld (or Kveshi)
3 – Akhaltsikhe region (Samtskhe-Javakheti), capital – Akhaltsikhe
4 – Gori region (Shida Kartli), capital – Gori
5 – Ananur region (Mtiuleti), capital – Ananuri
6 – Telavi region (Shida Kakheti), capital – Telavi
7 – Sighnaghi region (Kiziki), capital – Sighnaghi
8 – Zaqatala region (Saingilo), capital – Zaqatala
9 – Kutaisi region (Kvemo Imereti), capital – Kutaisi
10 – Zestaponi region (Zemo Imereti), capital – Zestaponi / Kvirily
11 – Oni region (Racha), capital – Oni
12 – Tsageri region (Lechkhum-Svaneti), capital – Tsageri
13 – Sukhumi region (Abkhazia-Samurzakano), capital – Sukhumi
14 – Zugdidi region (Zemo Odishi), capital – Zugdidi
15 – Senaki region (Kvemo Odishi), capital – Ahal-Senaki / Novo-Senaki
16 – Ozurgeti region (Guria), capital – Ozurgeti
17 – Batumi region (Adjara-Klarjeti), capital – Batumi
18 – Artaani region (Tao-Artaani), capital – Artaani / Ardagan
19 – Tiflis (Tbilisi) – capital of the Democratic Republic of Georgia.
Map of the borders of the territory that was proposed by the Georgian delegation at the Paris Peace Conference of 1919 for inclusion in the Democratic Republic of Georgia, as well as the territories that after 1921 were part of neighboring states.
Under the terms of theMoscow Peace Treaty of 7 May, Georgian independence was recognized bySoviet Russia in return for the legalization of Bolshevik organizations and a commitment not to allow foreign troops on Georgian soil.[20]
Georgia's 1918–1921 borders were formed through the border conflicts with its neighbors and ensuing treaties and conventions.
Map of changes in the territory of the Democratic Republic of Georgia in 1918–1921.
In the north, Georgia was bordered by variousRussian Civil War polities until Bolshevik power was established in theNorth Caucasus in the spring of 1920. The international border between Soviet Russia and Georgia was regulated by the 1920 Moscow Treaty. During theSochi conflict with the RussianWhite movement, Georgia briefly controlled theSochi district in 1918.In the southwest, the DRG's border with theOttoman Empire changed with the course ofWorld War I and was modified after the Ottoman defeat in the hostilities. Georgia regained control over Artvin, Ardahan, part of Batum province, Akhaltsikhe and Akhalkalaki. Batum was finally incorporated into the republic after the British evacuated the area in 1920. TheTreaty of Sèvres of 1920 granted Georgia control over easternLazistan includingRize andHopa.[citation needed] However, the Georgian government, unwilling to become embroiled in a new war withTurkish Revolutionaries, took no steps to take control of these areas.
Theborder disputes with the First Republic of Armenia over a part ofBorchalo district led to a brief war between the two countries in December 1918. With the British intervention theLori "neutral zone" was created, only to be reoccupied by Georgia after the fall of the Armenian Republic at the end of 1920.
In the southeast, Georgia was bordered byAzerbaijan, which claimed control ofZaqatala district, and parts of . The dispute, however, never led to hostilities and relations between the two countries were generally peaceful until the Sovietization of Azerbaijan.[23]
The 1919 projects and the 1921 constitution of Georgia grantedAbkhazia,Ajaria and Zaqatala a degree of autonomy. Article 107 of the constitution gave autonomy to Abkhazia and Zaqatala.[24] However, due to the Red Army invasion, the exact nature of this autonomy was never determined.[25] It did however serve as the first time in the modern era that Abkhazia was defined as a geographic entity.[26]
The territory of the Democratic Republic of Georgia included some territories that today belong to other countries. It was circa 107,600 km2, compared to 69,700 km2 in modern Georgia. The Soviet occupation of the DRG led to significant territorial rearrangements by which Georgia lost almost a third of its territory. Artvin, Ardahan and part of Batumi provinces were ceded to Turkey, Armenia gained control of Lori, and Azerbaijan obtained Zaqatala district. A portion of the Georgian marches along theGreater Caucasus Mountains was taken by Russia.
By 1921, following the fall of the Armenian and Azerbaijani republics and Georgia's reacquisition of the Lori and Zakatal districts, the population reached 2,677,000 according to a Soviet source, with an urban population of 475,000 (17.7%). This is supported by the results of the 1926 Soviet census in Georgia some 5 years later which indicated a population of 2,667,000, indicative of the loss of the aforementioned Lori and Zakatal districts to neighbouringArmenia andAzerbaijan respectively.[28]
The chairmen of the Georgian governmentNoe Zhordania and the head of People's GuardValiko Jugheli accompanied by a members of the People's Guard. Tbilisi, 1919-1920
The People's Guard was the privileged military force in the country. Founded on 5 September 1917, as the Worker's Guard, it was later renamed the Red Guard, and finally the People's Guard. It was a highly politicized military structure placed directly under the control of parliament rather than the Ministry of War. Throughout its existence (1917–1921), the Guard was under the command of the Menshevik activistValiko Jugheli.[29]
The DRG also formed its ownregular army. The only part of it was armed in peacetime, the majority being onfurlough and following their callings. If the republic had been in danger, they would have been called up by theGeneral Staff, supplied with arms, and allotted to their places. GeneralGiorgi Kvinitadze[30] was commander-in-chief, two times.
A Georgian armoured train
From March 1919 to October 1920, the Georgian army was reorganized. It consisted of 3 infantry brigades (later coalesced into one division), 1 cavalry brigade,[31] 2 fortress regiments, 3 artillery brigades, a sapper battalion, a telegraph platoon, a motor squadron with an armored car detachment, a cavalry regiment, and a military school. A People's Guard consisted of 4 regular battalions. It could further mobilize 18 battalions, i.e., one division. Thus, in 1920, the Georgian army and People's Guard together comprised 16 infantry battalions (1 army division and an NG regiment), 1 sapper battalion, 5 field artillery divisions, 2 cavalry legions, 2 motor squadrons with 2 armored car detachments, an air detachment and 4 armored trains. Beyond staff and fortress regiments, the army totaled 27,000. Mobilization could increase this number to 87,000. TheGeorgian navy possessed 1 destroyer, 4 fighter aircraft, 4 torpedo boats, 4 mine sweepers, and 10 steamboats.[32][31]
Although the republic had access to almost 200,000 veterans ofWorld War I with skilled generals and officers, the government failed to build up an effective defense system, a factor that greatly contributed to its collapse.
When the DRG was proclaimed, the Georgian economy was not in a strong position. While economic issues were a Europe-wide issue in 1918 (owing to the First World War), as a new state Georgia faced considerably more difficulties.[33] There were two main issues immediately facing Georgia: economic dependence on Russia, and the need to industrialise a largely agrarian society.[34] Further causing issues was a lack of direction from the Georgian government, which also tried to implement a socialist-based policy into economic matters, despite lacking the financial backing to keep the economy stable.[35]
As part of the Russian Empire Georgia had been partially industrialised, with natural resource extraction becoming a major feature of exports from the region. However, as historianStephen F. Jones has noted, imperial Russian policies served the metropolitan needs and imperial integration and there was no regional "strategy of economic development beyond state production of raw materials, the development of transport, military supplies and specialized crops such as tea, tobacco, and cotton."[34] This was also seen on an ethnic scale: the overwhelming amount of traders and business-owners in Georgia were ethnic Armenian, while the administration was composed largely of ethnic Russians. Ethnic Georgians mainly remained in agriculture or took up unskilled labour positions in the cities. This division of labour between ethnic groups proved difficult to reconcile once the DRG was established, and in the aftermath of theGeorgian–Armenian War in December 1918anti-Armenian sentiment throughout Georgia made the Armenian-dominated business class reluctant to help implement needed changes to improve the economy.[36]
Agriculture had been the dominant feature of the Georgian economy, and would remain as such throughout the existence of the DRG. Approximately 79% of the population worked on the land, though the methods used were outdated and far from efficient. This caused food shortages in the cities, and despite 81% of all arable land being used for grains, imports were also required, as was a ban on exporting food products like grain, fruits and vegetables.[37]
Themanganese industry atChiatura was of great importance to Europeanmetallurgy, providing about 70% of the world supply of manganese in the early 20th century. Traditionally, Georgia served also as an international transportation corridor through the keyBlack Sea ports ofBatumi andPoti.[34] However the First World War had a devastating effect on this industry as well. The Black Sea had been blockaded throughout the war, severely limiting the amount of exports. This led to a drastic reduction in economic activity in Georgia: the workforce at Chiatura dropped from 3,500 in 1913 to 250 in 1919, with the numbers only starting to rise in 1920. Emerging markets in Brazil and India also meant that the Chiatura mines were less important on a global scale, further weakening their output.[38]
The lack of international recognition and the government's only partially successful policy in the field hindered the economic development of the DRG and the country suffered an economic crisis. Some signs of improvement were observed towards 1920–1921.
Elizabeth Orbeliani, first woman lecturer and co-founder of Georgia's first university.
The most important event in the country's cultural life during this turbulent period was indeed the foundation of a national university in Tbilisi (now known as theTbilisi State University) (1918), a long-time dream of Georgians thwarted by theImperial Russian authorities for several decades.[8] Other educational centers includedgymnasiums inTbilisi,Batumi,Kutaisi,Ozurgeti,Poti andGori, Tbilisi Military School, Gori Pedagogical Seminary, the Pedagogical Seminary for Women, etc. Georgia also had a number of schools for ethnic minorities.[39]
The newspapersSakartvelos Respublika ("Republic of Georgia"),Sakartvelo ("Georgia"),Ertoba ("Unity"),Samshoblo ("Motherland"),Sakhalkho Sakme ("Public Affair"),The Georgian Messenger andThe Georgian Mail (both published in English) led the national press.[40]
The 1918–1921 independence ofGeorgia, though short-lived, was of particular importance for the development of national feeling among Georgians, a major factor that made the country one of the most active independent forces within theSoviet Union. Leaders of the national movement of the late 1980s frequently referred to the DRG as a victory in the struggle against theRussian Empire and drew parallels with the contemporary political situation, portraying a somewhat idealized image of the GeorgianFirst Republic.[41]
On 9 April 1991, the independence ofGeorgia was restored when the Act of the Restoration of State Independence of Georgia was adopted by theSupreme Council of the Republic of Georgia.[42] The national symbols used by the DRG were re-established as those of the newly independent nation and remained in use until 2004. 26 May, the day of the establishment of the DRG, is still celebrated as anational holiday – theIndependence Day of Georgia.[43]
^Georgia Marks Centennial of the First Constitution, Civil Georgia, 2021, quote: "Georgian PresidentSalome Zurabishvili underscored today that the first Constitution was "one of the most progressive" legal documents in Europe at that time, as it guaranteed universal suffrage, the abolition of the death penalty, fully proportional parliamentary elections, balanced governance, and free development of ethnic minorities, among others."
^Stephen F. Jones,The Making of Modern Georgia, 1918–2012: The First Georgian Republic and its Successors, Routledge, 2014, p. 150
^Hovannisian, Richard G. (1967).Armenia on the road to independence, 1918. Berkeley: University of California Press. p. 236.ISBN0-520-00574-0.OCLC825110.
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